topographia

Forms

topographia f (genitive topographiae); first declension^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek τοπογραφία (topographía, “description of a place”),^[2][3][4] formed from τόπος (tópos, “place”) and the element of γράφω (gráphō, “to write”).^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Servius uses it in his commentary on the Aeneid for the description of a place.^[2][5][4][3]

Semantic evolution

The Statius scholia use it in the same sense.^[2][5] In British medieval Latin it meant the description of a region, also in the titles of works;^[6] English topography was first used of one such book, the Topographia Hibernica of Geraldus Cambrensis.^[7] Conte names it as the Late Latin source of Italian topografia.^[4]

Timeline

• c. 400 AD – Servius uses it for the description of a place.^[2][3]
• early 15th century – English borrows it as topographie, first of the Topographia Hibernica.^[7]

Meanings

Noun

1. The description of a place or region; topography.^[2][5][6]

Related words

• English topography

References

1. ^ a b c Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
3. ^ a b c d Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
4. ^ a b c Conte, Gian Biagio; Pianezzola, Emilio; Ranucci, Giuliano (2010), il Latino: Vocabolario della lingua latina, 3rd ed., Florence: Le Monnier
5. ^ a b c Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
6. ^ a b Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press
7. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com